Hens Pecked

[rcookiegirl]

Please help, 3 of my babies were viciously pecked, and are literally scalped. What do I do?

 

[ChickenGal1842]

Oh gosh ... Do you have a rooster? Our chickens were pecked before we got a rooster and he put a stop to it. I'd definitely separate all the pecked chickens because they will literally get blood thirsty and peck each other more. I'd keep them separate until they heal and maybe get anti infection stuff to put on them and slowly introduce them to the other chickens again, maybe by using a wire fence in between them for a few days and then put them back with the others.

 

[redranger209]

Separate them now. They’ll end up pecking each other. Or you could use Blu-Kote. Be warned: it gets on everything.

 

[redranger209]

Is there still skin? If it’s just bone, take them to the nearest avian vet. Clean the wound with saline solution, then dry them with a hair dryer. I had a chick get pecked so bad, a large part of her neck had to get cut off by the vet. She’s happy, healthy, and in the flock now. I used the saline, some antibiotics to make sure it didn’t get infected. Then I sprayed it with derma gel. The huge wound lasted maybe three weeks.

 

[Mr.Universe]

ISOLATE THEM NOW

10-1 one pulled a feather, started to bleed and the rest had a fill day.

start administering antibiotics immediately, somebody else can suggest a proper antibiotic to prevent infections.

clean the wounds thuroughly, go to your loacal drug store and get a very large capacity syringe that can be used with screw on needles, and distilled water, and hydrogen peroxide, might be worth getting some dixie cups as well to make the chicken cones of shame to both protect the areas from pecking but also protect against debris getting in to an extent, some gauze, and as much neosporin as you can muster.

begin with luke warm distilled water and the syringe (used as a flushing tool) and very gently wrinse the areas, check for debris, you will need 2 sets of hands for this as they wont sit still in this area. clean well and mix up 50/50 in a dixie cup distilled and peroxide and use the syring to drip it on the live tissue to clean and dis infect the area. once cleaned apply liberally neosporin to every micron you can to the entire area exposed and open to air and hope for the best. clean the area 2 times a day for the next 3 days and DO NOT LET IT GET DRY keep it slathered with neosporin, use q-tips to apply neosporin and DO NOT SMEAR WITH BARE HANDS you can introduce bacteria to the tube with your finger if used. gloves are fine to smear if you cant get close with the Q-tip, this will also prevent them from chewing it themselves and making it worse, they dont like the taste, atleast my girls dont

you will need to isolate them apart from eachother as well and keep them seperate so they dont keep pecking or chewing. for the size of those girls id say the container you have them in is far too small and they began fighting for space. if one dies, more room for the more dominant chicks. get them in a bigger area.

consider the realization here you may loose those 2 girls, chickens are extremely resilient to injurys and heal from some severe wounds fairly well.

when re acclimating them to the girls if they make it, set up 2 pens in sight of the others and let them see eachother for about a week then get them close enough to interact between fences for about a week. then add them back to the rest and monitor for a few hours to see if they continue to get bullied. dont try to add them back to the rest of the flock without them having all feathers returned to that area or it will happen again as they see it as a wound

heres a pic of my chick that had her butt pecked open after one pulled her back pin feathers out. both when it happened and a week ago. shes mostly healed now with a tiny bit of tissue visible.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Is there still skin? If it’s just bone, take them to the nearest avian vet. Clean the wound with saline solution, then dry them with a hair dryer. I had a chick get pecked so bad, a large part of her neck had to get cut off by the vet. She’s happy, healthy, and in the flock now. I used the saline, some antibiotics to make sure it didn’t get infected. Then I sprayed it with derma gel. The huge wound lasted maybe three weeks.

I would recommend against drying wounds. You don't want wounds to dry out. I know it's common advice, but drying a wound mostly just kills the top layer of tissue so that bacteria can get a purchase and begin to grow. And, of course, by blowing air on it, you give a strong possibility of introducing new bacteria. (That's why the air in bio-laboratories is usually pretty still. Moving the air moves the bacteria in the air.)

 

[moniquem]

Awful!

 

[Mr.Universe]

I would recommend against drying wounds. You don't want wounds to dry out. I know it's common advice, but drying a wound mostly just kills the top layer of tissue so that bacteria can get a purchase and begin to grow. And, of course, by blowing air on it, you give a strong possibility of introducing new bacteria. (That's why the air in bio-laboratories is usually pretty still. Moving the air moves the bacteria in the air.)

indeed. its been proven that leaving a little saline behind actually encourages cell regrowth so drying isnt required. maybe a little light blotting to ensure there is no excessive saline left behind then slather it with as much neosporin you possible can and hope for the best

if the are begins to turn a greenish color you have some issues and you need to do a 70/30 peroxide distilled mixture to burn out the bacteria. they will be very unhappy birds, also make sure to wrinse the wound after cleaning with the peroxide mixture

 

[redranger209]

I would recommend against drying wounds. You don't want wounds to dry out. I know it's common advice, but drying a wound mostly just kills the top layer of tissue so that bacteria can get a purchase and begin to grow. And, of course, by blowing air on it, you give a strong possibility of introducing new bacteria. (That's why the air in bio-laboratories is usually pretty still. Moving the air moves the bacteria in the air.)

I meant dry her feathers, not the wound.

 

[Mr.Universe]

here is my girl today. i just took these with and without flash. as you can see the trauma has healed very well. keeping the area protected with neo is your best hope for a recovery